Words A-C

Abstract (see also: Article, Subscription database) A summary, often found at the beginning of a scholarly or technical article. Abstracts of articles may be included in subscription databases instead of the full text of the article.

Anthology A collection of writings, usually on one subject or by a single author, complied into a book.

Article A non-fiction writing published in a periodical publication such as a magazine, journal or newspaper.

Bibliographic statement Information about a publication, used in catalogs and indices and in lists of 'literature cited' or 'references'. Bibliographic information for a book includes author, title, date and place of publication and publisher's name; for an article it includes author, title of article, name of publication, date of publication or issue and volume number and page numbers. Bibliography 1 “A list of sources that documents material used to prepare a research paper, article or book. Each entry is structured according to a designated format. (see: Style manual) 2 - A list of books and/or articles that are related in some way: about a particular subject or written by a specific author. Biography A written account of a person's life. A life history. An autobiography is written by the subject of the account. Boolean logic/searching A search strategy used for information retrieval, particularly in databases. Boolean operators (AND, OR and NOT) are used to limit or expand results in searches using more than one keyword, subject heading or descriptor. The operators represent possible relationships between entities, such as information or data grouped by subject. Use of the operator AND returns only results that contain both search terms. OR returns results which include either of the terms. NOT returns results where only first term is present. Book A set of printed or written pages, bound along one side and encased in protective covers. Call number or Classification number A numerical or alphanumerical code assigned to library material to indicate the items location within the library and to group material together by subject treatment. The alphanumerical Library of Congress (LC) classification system is used in most academic and many large public libraries. Catalog (Library) Formerly a listing or card file of library material arranged alphabetically with each item represented by 3“5 entries (1 each for the work's author and title, and 1“3 entries for the work's subject). Now, often, an electronic database containing information on the library's collections that can be searched by keyword as well as author, title, and subject. Electronic catalogs can be restricted to a single computer or can be available via the Internet. Electronic catalogs are often referred to as OPACs or Online Public Access Catalog. Citation A bibliographic statement or reference to book, article, web page or other information source that provides enough information to locate the source. Citations included in bibliographies or work cited lists generally follow a specified format such as MLA, APA or CBE or another style. Collection A group of documents or information sources grouped together and arranged in a systematic way. Collections can be based on type of material (video collection), purpose or use (reference collection), or audience (children's collection). Copyright (see also: Fair Use, Intellectual Property, Public Domain) The legal right granted by a government to the author or responsible party to publish, produce, sell or distribute copies of a literary, musical, dramatic, or artistic work within certain limitations. In the United States, copyrighted material may be used only with permission of the copyright owner or under the Fair Use provisions of the Copyright law (U.S. Code Title 17). Cross reference A direction to search for information using an alternative descriptor or subject heading.